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Brooklyn Manhole Explosions Injure Firefighters, Workers


March 6, 2015 | Prachi Gupta

More manhole covers exploded in New York on Thursday night, this time injuring several people.

CBS2 reports that a Con Ed worker and National Grid worker were injured after responding to a manhole fire in Boreum Hill. In a separate incident about an hour later, three firefighters were taken to the hospital after a manhole fire broke out on in Bushwick. The firefighters’ injuries were non-life threatening, ABC7 reports. Two of the firemen sustained foot and leg injuries; the third was taken to Kings County Hospital after a manhole cover hit him, fracturing his leg.

The Bushwick explosion also left about one hundred people without power. As of early Friday morning, an emergency Con Ed crew was on the still at the scene.

Manhole explosions are not uncommon this time of year, when snow mixed with road salt can drip into the sewer lines and cause them to erode.

(Photo: Mark Malazarte)